


A Let Down [Loki/Reader]

by mml_nerdo



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Avengers Tower, F/M, Happiness Mixed with Angst, Natasha/Reader Friendship, Redemption, Slow Burn, Specifically Loki Redemption, Telepath, Telepathy, eventual Avenger!Loki, pre-AOU, some wholesome goodness
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-21
Updated: 2019-08-04
Packaged: 2020-07-10 09:48:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,416
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19903750
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mml_nerdo/pseuds/mml_nerdo
Summary: Thor brings Loki to the Avengers Tower to serve out the rest of his sentence given to him post-Battle Of New York and Fury intends to keep him on a leash until he can be used in missions. Of course, as long as he’s babysat by Y/N, the only known telepath. The only one that can keep him in check.





	1. {A Debriefing}

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry, this is a bit short, read the note at the end for more of an explanation.

The tower was oddly quiet today. I mean, it can be quiet from time to time when everyone goes on their separate missions, but as far as I know, everyone was here. Well, that excludes Thor who's in Asgard at this very moment, but still. It's strange.

I wander into the dining area finding no one. "Jarvis?" I ask for the AI's attention. "Yes, Ms. Y/L/N?" Jarvis responds. "Is anyone else awake in the tower?" I question as I move towards the kitchen, God I'm starving. "Everyone is awake miss. They are all currently residing in the debriefing room on level 55." _Shit._ How long did I sleep in?

"Jarvis, what's the time?" "It is currently 12:33 PM. The others did not want to wake you, though it would be wise to join them in the debriefing room." Jarvis suggests. I sigh and grab a muffin on the counter. Guess I better head there. I walk over to the elevator, pressing the call button. In seconds the elevator door opens and I go inside.

What could they possibly be debriefing? No one was returning from a mission today. Perhaps Thor made it back from Asgard. If that's the case there wouldn't be a debriefing unless something happened. I rack my mind to try and come to some sort of a conclusion, but I can't. I just woke up, I can't really be expected to use my entire brain, right?

The elevator doors open to level 55 and I'm met with rooms made entirely out of glass, so it's not very hard to spot everyone in the debriefing room. Kind of hard to miss that group of people. Nat has red hair, Tony seemingly always has a gadget or alcoholic drink in his hand, Thor's in his whole Asgard get-up, and it's kinda hard to miss a super soldier like Steve Rogers. As I get closer I see someone I didn't expect to see.

There he was, eyepatch and all, Nick Fury. What brings him here? He checks up every month and otherwise only comes by when something uber important happens. I open the door to the room and I'm met with a person I didn't notice at all when approaching the room. I stare into his green eyes, pure confusion spreading on my face. I pull away from the eye contact to look at everyone around the room, they're all looking at me.

I let the door go and it swings shut. I open my mouth and then close it, not really sure what to say. I search the room again and finally decide. "Okay.." I say, a half-laugh half-scoff follows, "What the fuck is going on?"

* * * * *

Fury explained how Thor brought Loki here to serve out the rest of his sentence. Something about how he and Loki himself think that being made to live in Midgard and help the people he hurt would be the way to redeem him for his past decisions. I trust Thor, however, I trust Loki about as far as I can throw him. The other Avengers seem to share the same sentiment.

"Just so we're on the same page, Y/N will be Loki's guardian while he's here, her abilities are surely the best defense against whatever Loki is planning," Fury says, scanning the room for anyone to disagree. I nod. It makes perfect sense. I don't trust Loki, however, I do trust myself and my abilities. "Fury's right," I say, "And I'm confident that I can handle whatever Loki throws at me." I make eye contact with the Asgardian standing next to his brother. "He's not the only one with mind games."

I see Natasha grin in the corner of my eye. "I'm okay with letting him stay under Y/N's custody, but if he does try anything, I think we should be able to dispose of him any way we see fit." She negotiates, looking at Fury. Fury nods his head "That is something I've already dealt with." Clint seems more than wary, and he seems like he wants to disagree. Obviously, he doesn't want to live under the same roof as the one who kept his mind prisoner.

"You don't really have a choice in the matter since you work for SHIELD, but I promise you that we are taking every safety precaution we can. Not to mention you are a group of the most powerful people on Earth and you've taken him down before you even really knew each other.

I know that last part is more so directed to the others. I wasn't involved in the Battle Of New York. In fact, I had been doing charity work, something that I can't do as often now that I'm an Avenger.

"Well, reindeer games is staying on his own floor." Stark finally speaks up. I furrow my brows. "That's not the best idea." I say "He should be on my floor that way I can keep tabs on him and he can't plan anything in secret." Stark sighs but gives up on his stance in record time. "Yeah, fine, that makes sense. Just be careful Y/N. Never trust him." He says. "Are we done here?" He adds, facing Fury.

"Yes, you're free to go. Y/N you can show Loki to his room. He has been stripped of the more dangerous aspects of his magic courtesy of the King of Asgard, so you should have nothing to worry about. I'll be back in a few days to discuss things further with you." With that, everyone leaves the room to go their own way except for Thor, Loki and I.

Thor approaches me. "I cannot thank you enough for this Lady Y/N." He clasps a hand on my shoulder. "And if my brother gives you any trouble whatsoever, come tell me." I smile and nod. "Of course Thor." He smiles back and takes his leave. I look at the tall man across from me. He's wearing Asgardian clothes, probably something we'll have to change at some point. I can't get a read on him. I don't want to get into his head, especially since I don't have a reason to at this point, but usually, I can still feel the general emotions of his thoughts. I chalk it up to him just being very indifferent at the present.

"Alright dipshit, let's get going." I turn on my heel towards the door and thankfully hear his footsteps behind me. I really didn't want to deal with him refusing to go and acting like a big manchild, so this behavior is much welcome.

The trip in the elevator is silent until it opens to my floor and I break it. "This floor is broken up into 3 big apartments. You'll be sharing the floor with Thor and I." It looks like he grimaces at the fact he'll be sharing a floor with his brother. Or maybe it's because he'll be sharing it with me. Either or, he's not very happy about the situation.

Not like that matters much, he doesn't really get a choice in the matter. I walk over to the vacant apartment. It's next to Thor's and across from mine. "This is now yours. Given your current state with serving a sentence and all, I don't know if you'll be allowed to decorate it. But, it does currently have all the essentials so it's not like you'll be completely uncomfortable."

He just stares blankly at the door, not acknowledging anything I said. It's quite annoying, actually.

I sigh and open the door. "In you go. Make yourself comfortable or whatever. If you have any questions, you can ask me or Jarvis." I say, ushering him in. He turns, a confused look on his face. "Jarvis?" He questions. It's the first time I've heard him speak this entire time. Surprisingly he has even more of a royal voice than Thor. I didn't think that was possible.

"That would be me, sir," Jarvis says from the speakers. Loki looks around the room as if trying to figure out where the voice was coming from. It almost makes me giggle. "What are you?" Loki says, still visibly confused. "I am Mr.Stark's artificial intelligence. AI for short. I can be compared to that of a servant in Asgard, something you're familiar with. However, instead of serving physically, I serve in knowledge and communications." Jarvis explains. Loki nods. "Impressive." He mutters under his breath.

I smile at the irony that he thinks a human accomplishment is impressive. "I'll leave you to get acquainted then," I say exiting the room and closing the door behind me. Perhaps this won't be as terrible as I thought. 


	2. {A Girl's Night}

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Melanie talks with a few of the other Avengers as well as taking the time out to say farewell to her best friend, Natasha, before she leaves on a long mission.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for the support on the first chapter, I really appreciate it! <3  
> I hope you enjoy!

Later that night I had agreed to have a couple of drinks with Nat before she headed out on her next assignment the following morning. She just wanted a quiet little girl's night in her apartment, it's something we try to do every once in a while. Just to get our minds off of dealing with the men in the tower.

She also mentioned how she didn't expect to be back within the month and she wanted to say goodbye tonight since I probably won't wake up in time to see her off tomorrow. I slip on some pajama shorts and a zip-up hoodie, I was so in need of a comfy night just talking with Nat. Before leaving I grab the bottle of wine in my fridge that I had been saving for around a month. Nat will definitely have her own booze, but it couldn't hurt to bring a little more, right?

With that, I turn off the lights in my apartment and walk out into the hallway. I turn to the right to see Loki sitting on a chair in the little living area on the floor. He's reading a book. "I see you've already found the library. Your brother mentioned you loved to read." He doesn't look up from the book, but he does respond. "It was actually a gift from him. He claimed it was a Midgardian tradition. A 'house-warming gift' he called it." I crack a smile. That is absolutely adorable.

"Alright well, enjoy your book and keep out of trouble. If you do anything that ruins my girl's night with Nat it will not be great for your health." I half-heartedly threaten. I swear I see a corner of his mouth twitch as if he were about to smile. "Now why would I do a thing like that?" He feigns innocence. I chuckle, "Yeah. Mhmm. God of mischief ring a bell?" I joke.

"Ah yes, well there is that. How could I ever forget?" He says smiling. "You should ask New York, I'm sure they remember," I say, joking. He stiffens and the smile fades. _Too soon, Y/N, too soon._

I drop my smile. "Sorry, bad joke," I say, attempting to clear the air. He waves his hand dismissively. "It's fine." I turn to leave but I'm bombarded with his thoughts- er well the emotion of his thoughts. I can't help feeling the emotion behind thought but I can stop myself from prodding into others' minds. And I never do that without a good reason.

The emotion itself is overwhelmingly sad and regretful. It makes me feel sorry for him, if only for a moment. Maybe he really does regret what happened. It's something I'll have to mull over later, I don't want to accidentally trigger looking into his mind.

I continue on my original track to the elevator, on my way to Nat.

* * * * *

We had been drinking for a little over an hour, just catching up on each other's lives. We've no moved on to glasses of wine and braiding each other's hair, a bit childish, but it's the best form of therapy. I had my back to Nat as she was fishtail braiding my hair. "You were awesome in the debriefing room today," She says, pretty much out of the blue. I furrow my brows. "What do you mean?" I feel the couch move as she shifts her weight to get more comfortable.

"I mean that I remember when you were so unsure of yourself and your powers. And today, you seemed so confident in your ability, saying that you could handle whatever Loki threw at you. I mean he's an alien who tried to invade earth," I smile, blushing at her kind words. She continues, "I just- I'm proud of you. It takes a lot to go from insecure to confident." She finishes my hair off and I turn to her.

"Alright my turn, turn around." She smiles at me before turning her back. I'm not as good at braiding hair as she is, so I start a simple french braid. "So, am I allowed to know anything about your mission?" She groans, "No, it's classified to just me and Fury. Not that it matters, nothing juicy to tell." Yeah, okay, Nat. It's classified and lasts over a week, yet it's nothing juicy.

"I wish we'd get assigned another duo mission," I say, recalling our last one around 6 months ago. Nat lets out a chuckle. "Ah man, Vegas was the best." I smile, looking back fondly on those memories.

Nat and I had uncovered an entire secret Hydra base. It was supposed to just be a scouting mission, see if anything was going on and report back. Once we discovered it deep within a casino, we figured out exactly how to handle it. We came back with some fresh wounds and new scars, but we took that baby apart just between the two of us.

When we got back all the boys asked us how we did it, and why we didn't call back up, etc. Our only response then and to this day when asked is "What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas, boys."

I finish braiding her hair and she sighs looking at the time. She gulps down the rest of her glass and turns back around. "I gotta get to sleep, gotta get up before the sun rises." We both get up from the couch. Nat takes our glasses to the sink and I grab my bottle of wine that's about half-empty now.

She meets me at the door and gives me a comforting hug. I smile and return it. "I'm gonna miss you." I breathe out. She sighs, "I'm gonna miss you too." I pull away from the hug. "Call me if you can, okay?" She smiles. "Of course I will Y/N."

I let myself out of her apartment saying my goodbyes one last time. Once I'm in the elevator I decide to alert Jarvis. "Jarvis, is anyone else out of their apartments?" It takes a moment for the AI to respond. "It appears that Mr. Stark and Dr. Banner are the only ones. They are in the laboratories." I smile, I have some people I can go bother for a bit. "Thank you, Jarvis," I say, pressing the button to go to the level Bruce and Tony are on. "My pleasure miss."

* * * * *

"Hey Bruce," I greet, walking through the doors of the elevator into the laboratory, "Hey dickwad," I say, looking at Tony. "Hi Y/N," Bruce says, greeting you with a warm smile before returning to his work. "You finish saying goodbye to your best friend- or should I say, girlfriend? I still have bets going for that by the way." Tony says. I smile, "Yes, the bets you're going to lose."

"If you say so, princess. By the way, I found out you told your new pal Loki about Jarvis. I made his use of Jarvis restricted. The only 2 people he can ask for the location of are you and Thor and knowledge that I didn't deem dangerous will be available to him." Tony explains. I nod "That's probably a good thing, although I think he's still in awe of the technology. I don't think he knows everything it can do."

"In any case, you probably came up here for a reason, what's on your mind?" Bruce asks. "Ah, just wondering what you guys were fucking up in here," I say, which is pretty much the truth. "Well, our sleep schedules mostly," Tony replies.

I laugh. "You do that every day Tony." I point out. "Oh, you've noticed?" He jokes. I smile, "Well don't stay up too long boys, tomorrow's Sunday, which means I'm making pancakes. I don't get off my ass to make breakfast just for you guys not to show up."

"We wouldn't miss your pancakes for the world, Y/N," Bruce says smiling up at me. "Goodnight boys," I say, going back to the elevator.

Getting back to my floor I see that Loki has retreated from his place in the common area, leaving his book on the coffee table. Curious, I walk over to see what book Thor got for Loki. I smile, seeing that it's 'The Tragedy of Julius Caesar". I could definitely see Loki enjoying it, I wonder if Thor knew enough about it to know that.

My curiosity sated, I go to my apartment. About as soon as I walk in, there's a knock on my door. I turn back around and open it to find Thor. I smile up at him. "Hey, dude, what's up?" He smiles back at me. "Lady Y/N I came here to ask something of you. Your pancake breakfast is tomorrow as it usually is every week and I came to ask if you would be so kind as to let my brother attend." He asks, with the same tone as a child asking his mother for a new toy.

"I don't see any problem with it," I say and I swear he lights up like a Christmas tree, "I mean he's under my custody and we'll both be there. I doubt he'll try anything anyway, but I'm sure the others will understand that he can't hurt anybody." I continue explaining.

"Thank you so much Lady Y/N!" He pulls me into a bear hug. "You don't know how much this means to me." I smile and then grimace as his hug begins to hurt. "You're welcome Thor, but could you let me go please, I don't think you know your own strength." He backs off immediately. "I apologize, my lady, I didn't mean to hurt you." He looks almost sheepish.

"I'm fine Thor." I chuckle. "Goodnight, I'll see you tomorrow." He wishes me goodnight as well and then goes on his way. I finally make my way to my bedroom. What an eventful day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is about the same length as the last chapter. Next one will definitely be longer and cover a few days instead of like half a day.
> 
> I know that so far it isn't anything super original or special and it's pretty much just introducing the atmosphere of the tower and how the Avengers interact with each other. I guess I'm just getting the vibe of it myself. 
> 
> Although I do have some actual plot ideas that will be set into motion shortly. 
> 
> Comments are always appreciated <3


	3. {A Sunday Morning Breakfast}

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The talked about "Pancake Breakfast" takes place, and not everyone is excited about Loki attending. Y/N discovers something about her powers, and just how comforting Chinese food can be when past wounds are brought up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this took longer than I wanted it to, but It's fairly good-sized chapter and okay writing so here ya go. 
> 
> I hope you enjoy! It gets a tad angsty, and I'll probably continue that trend, but it'll always be a mix of happiness and angst.

Tony stumbles into the kitchen first, which is certainly a shock. I'm mixing the batter as he takes a seat on a barstool. He rubs his eyes. I turn to him, mixing bowl in my arm. "Did you even sleep last night?" I question. He hums and deeply inhales. "Like a couple of hours." He answers. My shoulders drop. "Tony, you have to take care of yourself better. And that includes getting more sleep."

"I'm fine, Y/N, I promise." He responds, faking a smile for my benefit. I drop the subject for now, but I plan on getting through to him someday. Steve exits the elevator onto the open plan of this floor. It's a kitchen/dining area as well as a large living room for the whole gang. He just got back from his daily run. "Hi Y/N, Tony. How are your mornings going?" He greets with a smile on his face, taking the seat next to Tony.  
  
I return his smile and say "Mine's pretty good so far, Sunday mornings are the best." I finish the mixing and start pouring blobs of batter into a pan. "That's good. Man, I am so ready for your pancakes." Steve says. "Anything special with them today chef?" Tony asks. I smile opening the fridge. "You read my mind, Tony," I say, retrieving fruit from the fridge. Steve's eyes widen in excitement. He loves it when I switch up how I make pancakes, although I found out he prefers my blueberry pancakes.

Clint is the next one to show up, groggily pouring himself a cup of coffee I already made. We all know better than to say anything before his first cup. Bruce comes in right behind him, taking a seat next to Cap. "So will reindeer games be joining us as well?" Tony asks, probably joking. Clint tenses and so do I. I knew I would have to break the news eventually, but it would definitely help to have Nat around to keep everyone in check. Maybe if I rip the bandage off and explain how everything will be fine, I'll get through this breakfast without having to use my power on someone.

I take a deep breath. "Yeah, actually he is." Clint spits out his coffee, I flinch. "He's what?!" Clints screams at me. "Clint, it's going to be fine. He doesn't have the power to hurt you, he doesn't have his scepter, he doesn't have the tesseract. He doesn't have anything. He knows what will happen if he tries anything-" He interrupts me, "He has his brain Y/N! We have no clue what he could be planning. And I know you're very capable with your power on human beings, but he's not human Y/N! If I had any say in it he'd still be in an Asgardian prison cell or better yet, dead."

I see the two brothers over Clint's shoulder stop dead in their tracks as they enter the room. Perfect timing. Clint looks behind him, he glares at Loki and grabs his coffee cup. He turns to leave. "Clint, please don't go!" I beg him. He pauses for a moment but continues on anyway. I sigh in defeat. Thor looks guilty, and surprisingly, Loki looks a bit guilty too. I hear Steve get out his seat, "I'll go talk to him," he says. I shake my head.  
  
"No, I'll do it. I'll just finish cooking first so I can let him blow off steam." I say, getting back to my pancakes. Steve nods and sits back down. Thor and Loki approach cautiously. Tony's uncharacteristically quiet, but he's not causing a scene like Clint, so I'm content with it. "Anyone want coffee?" I ask, trying to change the atmosphere of the room to something more pleasant. "Oh I would love some coffee Lady Y/N," I smile at Thor's words, "Could you also get Loki a cup? I would love for him to try a Midgardian delight."

While I make coffee the way Thor likes it I respond to him," I'll get you coffee, but Loki on the other hand, I think he's more of a tea kinda guy." Thor nods as I hand him his coffee. "Ah yes, the leaf infused water you usually drink. Perhaps you are right, that does seem like something Loki would prefer." I smile at him and move to make tea for Loki and I. "What kind of tea do you have?" Bruce asks me.

Tony gets up to make himself a coffee, though he could've just asked me. He also pours some for Steve. "Only the good stuff Bruce, green tea, chamomile, and raspberry black tea. Tony, I could've gotten that for you guys." Tony sits back down and hands Steve his cup. "I figured I'd just help you out princess. There's a lot of us and only one of you, plus I don't want you to get distracted enough to burn the pancakes." He says while Bruce asks for chamomile tea.  
  
I get a third mug for Bruce's tea. "Tony you know me, I like to treat you guys to this breakfast but you gotta let me handle things because I want you guys to relax. Also, I never burn pancakes." I say, gesturing my hand with the mug in it to get my point across. "If you do this for us to 'relax' as you said, then when do you get to relax. You do the same job as us, it doesn't matter how long you've been doing it." Steve adds to Tony's argument.  
  
I shrug. "I get my small girl's nights with Nat, I get to sleep in every once in a while. I promise I'm fine. I just want to make sure that you guys get a chance to relax and I guess bond, okay? We're a family and families have pancakes on Sunday morning, and there's gotta be someone to make those pancakes." I finish my small rant, as well as the tea. I hand Bruce his mug and slide Loki's his over the counter.

Loki takes the mug and inspects it before taking a sip. His eyes light up in surprise. I smile. "You like it?" I ask, taking a sip from my own mug. He looks at me, "Yes, it's actually quite good." He responds. My smile widens and I meet Thor's eyes. He looks so happy that his brother's actually enjoying himself and that he's actually spending time with everyone. I pull my eyes away from his, realizing that I may have accidentally tapped into his thoughts.

Sometimes observing someone's facial features for emotion actually send me into what they're thinking. I know I don't mean for it to happen, but it scares me that I can do that so easily. I'm afraid that one day someone will be able to tell when it happens.

* * * * *

After breakfast, Steve leaves to his tower apartment and Tony to the labs of course. Bruce and Thor help me clean up and Loki attempts to help but I end up telling him to just sit after he drops a plate. Bruce and Thor leave to discuss a shared mission they'll be leaving for in the near future. 

By the time everyone goes their separate ways it's 10:00. I have a couple of hours to kill before meeting Steve for some sparring in the training rooms. Steve is my favorite training buddy, he can push me to my limits and still be gentle and sweet afterward. I leave feeling like I accomplished a lot, and he practically begs me to join him for lunch afterward. All in all, it often makes my day a lot brighter.

"Y/N?" Loki says, breaking me from my thoughts. I hum in response turning to him. "I've finished the book that Thor gifted to me and I remember you mentioning a library of some sort in the tower?" I nod my head, gesturing my head toward the elevator before making my way there to signal for him to follow. He gets the hint.  
  
"I'll show it to you before heading to Clint." I press the call button and wait with the green-eyed Asgardian next to me. "I'm sorry for the reaction I caused this morning." He apologizes, looking down at his feet. I turn my head to him, "It's okay, I was expecting it. You'll probably have to deal with more of those, but hopefully, I can keep it to a minimum."

The elevator doors open and we file in. I punch in the numbers for the library. "May I ask you a question?" Loki says, curiosity gleaming in his. "You just did," I laugh, "Yeah, sure, go ahead." I lean against the wall of the elevator, facing him. He turns to me as well. "What exactly are your abilities? I keep hearing others talk so highly of them and yet no one mentions what they are." He asks, crossing his arms, trying to dissect me with his eyes.

I smile and decide to play it up, "That's for me to know and you to find out." He grins with a mischievous glint in his eyes. "In that case, perhaps you could show me?" I sigh, it might be funny to make him do something, however, it would have to be something pretty innocent. Something normal, but make him question himself as it also makes no sense. I rack my brain for an idea before settling.

"Probably not the best idea in an elevator Loki." I lie, hoping he takes it as my ability is something of sheer power like Thor's lightning. "Oh, so you have that sort of power? One that could rip through this entire building?" He says, curiosity taking over his features again.

I smile to myself, phase 2 is a go. "Perhaps," I say, looking him directly in the eye. It's showtime. I ignore his thoughts as I dig into his mind, searching for his motor capabilities. Once I find it, I'm able to look away and do my work. The elevator dings open to the floor, and I watch as Loki's mind blindly carries out my direct instructions.

_Reach over and press the close door button._

He carries out the task. Almost breaking away as confusion spreads over his face. I keep in my chuckle.

_Press the button for floor 27._

He does so. I smile a tiny bit, proud of myself. I've just successfully controlled an alien being. Now I really do know that I can handle him. Loki still looks confused. I look at him with fake confusion on my face. "What business do you have to attend to on that floor? That's Clint, Steve and Nat's floor. Plus I thought you had wanted to go to the library."

"I- I do want to go to the library, I'm not entirely sure why- wait, are you a telepath?" He questions, almost exasperated. "I have no idea what you're talking about Loki, but I do need to go to this floor and now that you know where the library, I can go talk to Clint."

I get off on floor 27 and leave behind a flustered Loki. I can't believe I just pulled a prank on the Norse god of mischief. I trudge on to Clint's apartment door. I haven't even prepared anything to say to him really, so I guess we'll just wait and see how this goes. I hesitantly bring my hand to his door, knocking.

"Hold on a sec," He says from within. I take a deep breath to calm my nerves. It's just Clint, he'll come around, it'll be fine. He opens the door and groans, "What do you want Y/N?" He backs off from the door, leaving it open for me to come in. I do. "I want to talk," I say, now standing in the middle of his living room.

"Of course you do," He mutters, sitting on one of his recliners. "Listen, I know what happened, what Loki did to you. It's completely normal for you to feel and act this way, in fact, I'd probably do the same. I don't trust him either, and I want you to know that. But I do trust Thor, and I know that somewhere in that head of yours, you do too." He nods along with what I'm saying.  
  
"That doesn't mean I have to be as friendly as you're being, Y/N. Maybe it's because you're a better person than me or more forgiving or whatever crap you're telling yourself. He's a monster. There's no way he's here to repent for his sins or whatever shit he's feeding Thor. For fuck sake Y/N, you're supposed to be an equivalent to a prison guard, he's supposed to fear you. But instead you're more like a caregiver, it's like you're hand-feeding him." He says, getting up and pacing the room.

I should just let him rant and get it out before I say anything. "He's been here for a _day_ , and you're being all buddy-buddy with him and acting like he hasn't murdered hundreds of people. You need to be more cautious of him, he needs to fear you if this is going to even remotely work. I don't know why you're acting this way. Maybe it's because he's handsome and he talks all pretty and shit, and he has you completely under his spell." He continues.  
  


Okay, that's it. He crossed the line. "I am not doing this or acting this way because he's a pretty boy, okay? You fucking know me better than that, Clint! I'm not acting without caution, actually, I just found out that I can control him. That is fan-fucking-tastic progress, and if I'm friendly with him and he's friendly back, maybe just maybe this doesn't in disaster for either side. I know he's done evil things, but Thor loves him and believes in him. I would never, _ever_ , take a sibling away from someone. You know that better than anyone." I let it all loose, all the anger I hadn't shown in a while. I take a deep breath to settle myself.

"I'm sorry Clint, I'm not angry at you I just-" He interrupts me, "I know, Y/N, I know. It's almost that time of the year again, and I know you miss her." I choke back the tears welling up in my eyes. "I don't want to talk about her right now," I say, my voice shaking slightly. "I know, kid, come here." I look up to see his arms extended.

After a moment I accept his hug and melt into it. "I'm sorry. I'll try to be better, okay?" He says, rubbing my back. "You better," I say, a laugh escaping me. "I know that you can," I say, a bit more genuinely

* * * * *

I land with my back to the mat from the blow I just took. "You good?" Steve's voice says above me, his hand extending out for me to grab. I accept it and he pulls me off the ground. He smiles at me. "That's enough sparring, for now, you did well though. Want to move on to weight training?" I nod as we leave the sparring area for the free weight area.

We grab dumbbells first, each doing our own lifting across from each other. He starts doing bicep curl-up and I work on tricep lifts. "Hear back from Fury about Loki yet?" He asks. I shake my head. "No, but I better hear from him soon. I have no idea what I'm gonna do with that mischievous bastard." I answer, a smile forming on my lips.

"Has he caused any trouble?" He questions, concern practically flooding from him. "No, Cap, he hasn't. He hasn't been totally unpleasant to be around yet either." He finishes his set and stands up. "That's good, but if something happens and you need help, don't ever hesitate to ask." He says, clasping a hand on my shoulder. I smile up at him, "I know you got my back Cap."

The rest of the workout goes by smoothly, not much conversation other than about what we were doing. At the end of our last set with bench press, I grab my towel and wipe the sweat off of myself. "You did really good today. You're improving each time we train together." Steve says, grabbing his own towel and hanging it around his neck.

"Thanks, Cap. How about we grab take out from Panda Express for lunch?" I suggest. He nods. "Sounds good, I'll go get it now and you'll have time to shower if you want." He says, pressing the call button on the elevator for the both of us.  
  
"You sure? I can go get it and you can shower." I pause and then add, "I don't mind paying." He shakes his head and smiles. "No, you paid last time, it's my turn. You want your usual order?" I nod and enter the elevator as the doors open.

* * * * *  
  
I feel very refreshed after the shower and right after I got dried off and dressed I had a message on my phone from Steve telling me he was in the kitchen with our food. I texted back, telling him I'd be there in a few as I step out of my apartment into the hall.

I turn my head and see Loki and Thor talking in the living area. Loki's not wearing his usual Asgardian garb. Instead, he's wearing a green button-up shirt and black pants. Thor must have gotten him clothes to wear to fit in better. It's still pretty formal though, compared to Thor's casual jacket and jeans.

They both catch my gaze and I smile at them. "Lady Y/N!" Thor exclaims, "We were just reminiscing about times on Asgard and old battles. Do you care to join in? You must have many stories of your own from here on Earth." My smile brightens, it's always nice to see Thor happy and practically buzzing with energy.

Loki, on the other hand, seems depressed by the conversation. Maybe he misses Asgard or battling by his brother's side. Or perhaps he's just bored with it and would rather be spending his time doing anything else.  
  
I clear my throat to talk. "I would, but I have lunch waiting for me in the kitchen. You guys have fun though, but not too much fun, Loki still has to behave." I say, throwing in a friendly chuckle. Thor nods, "Of course, enjoy your meal Lady Y/N."

I turn to go to the elevator just as it opens to reveal Clint. I'm a bit taken aback at first, furrowing my brow in confusion. "What's up?" I ask, approaching him. He's not very happy but I'm not sure if that's because of Loki's presence or something else.

"Your mom called me, she said she couldn't get a hold of you and since she still had my contact from- well anyway she wants you to call her. She wants you to visit and talk about your sister." He says, his voice practically a whisper. I nod in understanding. To tell the truth, I'd been ignoring her calls for a while now. "Yeah okay, I'll call her later." I want it to be a lie, but I know I have to face it eventually. Might as well be today.

He puts a hand on my shoulder. "If you need to talk about it after, you come to me, okay?" I give a small nod and press my lips together, looking down. He lets his hand drop after giving my shoulder a gentle squeeze.

We both walk back to the elevator. Well, at least I have Chinese food and Steve to distract me for a little while.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, so that's the chapter I've been working on for like a week and a half now. I'm sorry it's not anything super-duper special but it is setting up a couple of things that have to happen in the future.
> 
> Like the reader visiting her mom and Fury finally showing up to talk more about Loki. Also, some understandable conflict between Clint and Loki which probably won't fix itself.
> 
> Thank you for reading, comments are always appreciated! <3
> 
> P.S Thank you so much for like 450 hits!!

**Author's Note:**

> Hey so this is my first time writing on here, I usually write on Wattpad.  
> I wanted to try it out so this is kind of a test run to see if I like it and if others will like it. This is also my first time writing MCU fanfiction so this is also to test the waters with that.
> 
> Comments are much appreciated <3
> 
> Let me know if you want me to continue.


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